Blood Stained Cherry Blossom
by RukiaCHAN 1
Summary: Mizuki one of the few spirit wielders alive forced from the Soul Society by her brothers is called back to capture and maybe even kill her two siblings.But she is thrown into a world where decisions made go against her own morals and the growing feeling of a love she thought was lost begin to rock her resolve.When the time comes is she really willing to kill her brothers?OCxByakuya
1. A Lost Soul

Hello anyone who has bothered to read this...  
I have had this story in my head for a bout one and a half years now, trying to perfect the character, storyline and history.  
After reading a few more bleach based fics I finally decided to finish the 1/2 done page i had written just inder 6 months ago.  
I think it turned out quite well, considering my brain has had a 2 month break from any real work or writing.  
Anyway back to the fic, it is based around an Original Character called Mizuki Kobayashi (I'll link the devi pic to the next chapter as well as my profile.) it's really hard to do a good authors note this early in a story, but i hope you like the characters and story!  
(bold means its a dream or flashback and just itallics means she's thinking it to herself! ((or her zanpakutou)))

**I DO NOT OWN BLEACH, JUST MIZUKI AND THE PLOT**

* * *

_**A hooded girl flash stepped from tree top to tree top just managing to avoid the kido spells being fired at her. The sun shone in her eyes, forcing her to stop on a slightly higher tree than she would have liked. The small girl turned around quickly, causing the hood to fall from her head and her long golden-brown hair to spill out across her face. A twig cracked behind her, she swivelled on her heels and a second later was met by his dark grey eyes. **_

_**She tried to bring the sword up to defend herself, but before she could fully calculate what was happening she was pinned against a large tree trunk. Her blue eyes searched for his next attack, but were instead blinded by the sun and before she knew it the shaded figure had his weight pressed against her and managed to pull the sword away,**_

"_**Looks like I win again, Mizuki-san," his face was still covered in shadows, but she could sense the smile creep onto his lips. His smile, a rare sight that she loved to see, but he always seemed to always hide from her. She tried to move against the weight of his body and find a way to throw him away, but the light began to grow brighter and brighter and the weight of his body as well as his shaded figure disappeared completely.**_

Mizuki's eyes shot open, the cold, bleach white ceiling glowed in the dim morning light; she sat up and rubbed her eyes.

"I truly hate that dream…." Her heart was racing; the female soul reaper took a steadying breath and rubbed her temple with a slightly shaky hand. Her ice blue eyes looked up and examined her surroundings, the kido spell she set around the area last night was still intact and she couldn't sense another spiritual pressure for miles, good, no one had sensed her enter Karakura town, and even if they had they couldn't care less.

She stood and let out a soft sigh before walking to the edge of the kido spell. Her hand rose against the glass-like force field then focused her reiatsu and shattered the spell. She looked out the broken window; the sun was too high to see,

"Must be nearly noon," she whispered to herself then dawdled back to her camping spot gathered her few belongings in a small chocolate brown backpack, straightened her ever-so-slightly to big green kimono and turned towards the large double doors of the abandoned building.

She took a deep breath of the fresh outdoor air as the suns heat radiated through her small frame. Her eyes lazily trailed over the world around her before she flash stepped away from the building. _'Why not stay there a little while? I rather liked it there'_ a voice echoed in her head.

"Because we need to see Urahara-san he's the only one that can help us at the moment, and besides I don't want to draw any unwanted attention" she replied while jumping from building to building.

"_That may be true but still, these days there's always something going on…_" the female voice said, slightly saddened. Mizuki smiled sadly,

"I know you want to go back, but I can't bring myself to become trapped in that place again," she whispered and closed her mind off before her zanpakuto had a chance to answer or read deeper into her thoughts.

OoOoO

Mizuki slowed her speed as she reached the street Urahara's Shop was on, she rounded a corner and found herself standing in a dirt covered front yard with a teenaged looking boy and girl. The boy looked irritated and fuming, his broom was broken in two and lying on the ground. The girl had soft dark blue eyes and raven black hair; she was standing on top of the wooden porch of the building holding a dust pan and broom, cleaning broken glass from where she was standing.

"Hey!" the boy called, Mizuki was snapped from her momentary daze. "Didn't you hear me? What are you doing here?" he yelled again. The female soul reaper rose an eyebrow and strode forward,

"I'm here to see Urahara Kisuke," she said swiftly while eyeing the red headed boy carefully.

"Um-, Mr Urahara there's someone here too see you," The girl called from the doorway. Moments later Tessai and Urahara emerged from the darkness of the shop behind the small girl. From where the brunette was she could see the intrigued look cross Urahara's face.

"Ururu, Jinta, there are other chores for you to so inside," Tessai said sternly. Almost immediately Jinta turned and went back inside, Mizuki chuckled to herself, '_Must be afraid of Tessai-san but then again, I can't blame him'_. Ururu followed behind the red head boy and Urahara lifted his hand in a welcoming gesture,

"It's been a long time, Mizuki-chan," he said with a smile.

OoOoO

Urahara took a sip of the tea Ururu had left on the table as the petite brunette looked around the small yet comfortable room.

"I must say, I'm surprised you came back after all these years, and after everything that happened" he said with a goofy look covering his face. Mizuki half laughed half sighed,

"It was a necessary precaution, my brothers are still yet to found and then there was the trouble with Aizen. The captain-commander made sure I was far enough away not to be dragged into it," Urahara's face darkened slightly,

"The Soul Society kept regular contact with you?" he asked, Mizuki nodded.

"But only by either the captain-commander or Ukitake-taichou," she reached for one of the steaming cups of sweet smelling tea from the table, "My father made sure that only captains he would trust with his own life knew where I was," They stayed for several tense moments in silence while the former twelfth squad captain mulled over everything she had just said,

"How many people in the soul society know you're still alive?" he asked seriously,

"As far as I know, the two captains I've mentioned as well as Unohana and Kyoraku-taichou," she picked up the small charm hanging from the thin chain around her neck, "thanks to this," Urahara cracked a wide smile,

"You're just full of surprises, aren't you?" he leaned forward to closer examine the small pendant, "I remember designing something like this. It's a reiatsu jammer, am I right?" Mizuki returned his smile and nodded.

"It hasn't let me down so far," she said while taking another sip of tea.

"There are very few reasons for you to return to Karakura Town and probably even fewer to come visiting me." Mizuki gave him a hurt look,

"So I'm not allowed to say 'hello' to an old friend anymore?" she asked sarcastically. Urahara slid back into a seated position. Mizuki slipped the necklace back behind her kimono.

"Am I right to presume that you want me to open the senkaimon for you?" Mizuki sighed softly,

"Almost right," she said placing the tea back on the table, "from what I've heard, your shop is well known to almost all soul reapers, so, to make sure my siblings don't sense anything out of the ordinary happening near my spiritual pressure, like the senkaimon being opened, they're sending an escort to meet me _here_. Considering the high level spiritual pressures that come in and out every day, mine should be almost lost in the mix" Urahara smiled and rose,

"Then feel free to stay here while you wait, I assume they'll be here with in a few days?" he hid his eyes in the shadow of his striped white and green hat.

"Yes… but there's one more thing," she stood and walked toward him, pulling a small key from her kimono, "I was given this as a fail-safe. If my father ever deemed that life in the soul society had become too dangerous, I could use this to get to safety. Unfortunately I can almost guarantee it won't be safe in the Soul Society until my brothers are dealt with." She held it out to him, "would you please keep it safe?" Urahara's eyes went wide for a moment, his hand raised to the key and he pulled it into his hand.

* * *

It's a bit of a crappy ending, but if i did anymore it would dribble and the first two chapters would be forever joined.  
But other than that what did you think? Obviously you cant know much about anything yet, but meh, I WANTS FEEDBACK PLEASE!  
Also a quick contest kinda thing. What is the key too? honestly if you think about it carefully enough you should be able to get it. but even if you dont more will be revealed in the next chapter!

Read, Reveiw, Alert or Favorite (whatever it is you do)

Ja ne, minna-san!  
-Rukia CHAN1 :3


	2. Greetings and Memories

Hi everyone! I'd like to thank all the poeple who actually bothered to read the last chapter, and a special thanks to lotsube88 who favorited and NiiNii-sama who put the story on alert :D

Anyway, as promised, this chapter is a little longer, and goes into slightly more detail about Mizuki and her past... just a little though. i dont wanna ruin too much too soon :3

Enjoy~!

* * *

Urahara fiddled with the small key between his fingers. The dim light of the evening still managed to make the small metal object glow with magnificent colours,

"You're right Kisuke; it is a type of Oken… however the properties seem to have been changed, it may open to a separate dimension, not the one you're thinking…" Yoruichi said focusing on the key fitting comfortably in the palm of the man's hand,

"The size, strength and colour changed when Mizuki gave it to me," he replied with a not so happy sigh, "No matter where it leads; only she can open the door. Which means it will be safe here, no need to pry any further, ne?" he smiled wickedly and threw the small object in the air then caught it again before standing. Yoruichi raised a slender eyebrow causing the blonde man to smile wider, "Don't worry so much Yoruichi," he lifted one of the paintings off of the wall, and placed the key in a small opening in the wall before surrounding it with a kido spell to hide it,

"Kisuke," the purple haired woman shifted slightly, "You promised; we all promised Yasahiro that she wouldn't come under any harm after he died. You know what will happen if she returns…" she trailed off as her eyes met Urahara's.

"I know, but her… unique abilities are starting to meld with her zanpakuto… there's no avoiding it anymore."

OoOoO

Mizuki sat on top of a large rock inside the large training area under Urahara's shop. Orihime was trying her best to get Chad into a conversation that lasted more than a few words; the brunette had lost interest in what Orihime was saying, something about school, work and homework, she glanced at a smiling Orihime before turning back to Ichigo as he sparred against another soul reaper named Renji.

"What's Abarai-san doing here?" a tall, thin, pale black haired man called from behind them,

"Uryu-kun!" The busty red head called while waving, "What are you doing here?" she asked with a happy smile.

"I was walking home and sensed the clashes of spiritual pressure and came to see what was happening," he eyed Mizuki carefully. Orihime looked from her friend and Mizuki then back again,

"Oh right! This is Mizuki Kobayashi; she's a noble from the soul society, and this is Uryu Ishida, he's a Quincy," she said; the petite brunette gave an awkward wave,

"Hi," she said with a smile. Uryu gave a welcoming nod and wave before walking up to the rock the three were sitting on.

Mizuki's eyes went back to the training match as Uryu questioned Orihime and Chad further. Her eyes lingered on Ichigo for a few seconds, something about his demeanour, appearance and voice seemed familiar, Mizuki shook her head softly and let the thought drift from her mind and reality come back into focus as Ichigo sent his red haired opponent through one of the boulders less than 3 metres from where they were seated.

"Kurosaki! Watch it would you!" Uryu yelled. Ichigo's head snapped up and a surprised look appeared,

"Oh hey Uryu, when did you get here?" he replied coolly while swinging his butcher-knife-like zanpakuto over his shoulder. Renji's hunched over figure started to appear from the golden dust floating around the air; his hair had spilled from the thin elastic holding it back, and a thin layer of blood covered his forehead. His hand reached up and wiped the blood from his brow,

"Okay, that's enough right now, I don't need a concussion, Kuchiki-taichou won't be happy if he gets stuck with my paperwork as well," he called out. Mizuki's stomach churned, _'Of course he had been promoted to captain, why wouldn't he have been?_' she took a steadying breath and tried to ease the tight feeling in her heart, _"It was wrong of you to leave without telling him…"_ her zanpakuto said calmly, the brunette closed her eyes for a moment, _'I know, but it had to be done… I can't start regretting everything I've done now' _she could almost see the irritated, angry and above all disappointed face of her zanpakuto after that shameful sentence. Mizuki opened her eyes and once again tried to let the thoughts of her past slip from her mind.

After seeing Renji made it up to the shop safely there was a short and proper greeting, but Ichigo and his friends were forced to leave early, apparently a few teachers had been on their case about missing too much school over the past year, and as a result of not wanting to fail their last year, or get extra assignments the next time they took time off, they had to be at every lesson for the next semester, unless of course they were on their 'death bed'; Mizuki was happy she no longer had to deal with such irritations as teachers anymore.

OoOoO

Soon after Ichigo and his friends had left, Mizuki found herself wandering down in the large training field again, _"If you wanted to leave the past behind, then why keep coming back down here?"_

"I'm not sure why, it just puts my mind at ease," she whispered back while holding her hand lightly on one of the large rocks.

_**Mizuki looked up; it seemed like a life time waiting for his attack to hit her, only it never came. She glanced around the empty training field; she could feel his spiritual pressure all around,**_

"_**Come on, where are you?" she called out. Her head turned and she was met by his wooden training sword. She raised her hand to it and knocked it away from her own before swinging violently at him.**_

"_**You're too slow," he said calmly then disappeared. Her eyes widened for a moment, she could feel one of his arms snake around her waist and the other knock the sword out of her hands before she had time to react. His grip on her tightened as she tried with no avail to wriggle free of him, "I told you already, you needed to practice your shunpo," her back lent against his chest as his hand released her wrist and trailed up her body to cup her cheek.**_

"Byaku-," the brunette reached a hand up to gingerly touch her now hot cheek. Ever since she was a small child Mizuki would have horrible nightmares of thousands of years old battles between shinigami, but now even while she was awake, her mind would drift off into the past, whether it be hers or not. "That was…" she tightly closed her eyes forcing the spirits she could feel trying to get into her mind away from her.

"Are you talking to yourself?" a male voice jokingly called from behind her. Mizuki almost jumped out of her skin, she turned around and quickly scanned the man standing behind her. It was Renji, who was looking much better now than he was an hour ago had his arm braced against a boulder and heavily tattooed eyebrows raised,

"I-uh, no, um…" she pulled the chopstick-like hair pin from her hair, "I was talking to my zanpakuto," she raised the small, black and white hair pin and it gave off a sharp blast of reiatsu, an irritated look crossed Mizuki's face, '_Show off…_'. Amusement covered Renji's features.

'I'd have never expected a noble like you to have a zanpakuto, let alone one with so much…" he thought for a moment, "spunk?" Mizuki giggled then gave him a serious look,

"What do you mean 'a noble like me'?" Renji's eyes widened and his hands shot up defensively, he tried several times to get a word out but continuously stuttered. A large smile tugged at the corners of the small brunette's lips and she soon broke out laughing. "I would have never guessed you to get so worried of a few simple words, Renji-san," the red head stood silently while the petite girl gently placed the chopstick-like hair pin back in place.

Renji rubbed the side of his neck with a humiliated look and faint blush on his face, Mizuki smiled apologetically to try and ease the anxiousness she could see on his face; it took a few moments, but Renji eventually eased back against the sand coloured boulder with an amused grin on his face,

"Considering how many of the noble families act; I'm guessing you were lucky to have even been trained to attain your zanpakuto, ne?" he asked, hoping he hadn't said anything wrong… this time. Mizuki considered his words,

"Yes I suppose so; my father and brothers were **very** over protective when it came to things like the 13 Court Guard Squads. I was lucky though, my father had many friends with in the Gotei 13 who were captains, and they talked him into allowing me," she replied with a happy sigh.

She looked up and met brown Renji's eyes, since the tense and moderately awkward moment at the beginning of their conversation, he had started to relax and it seemed to him that she preferred being treated more average than a normal noble would.

"You knew Captains growing up?" he asked lazily. He had served as the lieutenant for squad 6 for a few years now, but he still barely knew anything about his captain, "What about other noble families?" Renji's question momentarily surprised Mizuki, but she shrugged off her expression with ease,

"Um, yes, I pretty much grew up with a few of the nobles my age," Renji didn't want to push further than that, but the curious look on his face said it all to the petite brunette before him, "Mainly Yoruichi-san she was the one who helped train me, oh and Kuchiki Byakuya. Even though his clan is classed above mine, he didn't really seem to mind," she said with a smile. She could see Renji's features light up, "I won't say too much though, otherwise we'll both get a scolding about trying to snoop into his life," her smile turned into a grin, as did his and soon they were both chuckling.

_*Later that night* _

Mizuki waved goodbye to the red headed soul reaper as he slowly disappeared into the intense light of the senkaimon, she took a deep breath of the cool afternoon air and turned to move back into the shop.

She had spent most of the afternoon with the shinigami, even though it was dangerous to leave the kido barrier Tessai put up, she felt calmer in the presence of someone who didn't know the depths of her past. The brunette turned and closed the door before returning to the small room her belongings were,

"You can't just stay locked away in here, besides you said a little while ago that it'd be a few more hours till someone turned up." Yoruichi called with a grin, Mizuki turned to her and raised an eyebrow,

"Then what do you propose I do till then?" she replied, intrigue laced in her words. The purple haired woman strode forward and pulled Mizuki up and along by her elbow.

OoOoO

The two women glanced at the rising moon from the top of the bridge joining the two halves of Karukura. The petite brunet tried not to think about how high they were, but the continuous and strong gusts of wind didn't help to settle her stomach.

"You're sure about going back?" Mizuki's eyes flicked to the woman sitting on the ledge of the large pillar,

"Everyone has been asking me that recently…" she sighed, "yes, I'm sure, I don't care what the soul society think or what Central 46 decide; I need to try to stop Akifumi, otherwise he'll end up getting stuck deeper into something neither of them will be able to stop." Yoruichi lay against the cool concrete beneath them,

"Do you know what they're after?" she retorted curiously. Mizuki nodded,

"The key, and me, dead…" she sighed and held the gaze of the moon.

"That's not all… Kisuke-" Yoruichi started but a large tremor of unknown spirit energy passed through them both and cut the purple haired woman off short. Something was drawing near and whatever it was wasn't friendly. Both quickly stood, glancing in all directions for the cause of the spiritual pressure. Nothing, the darkness and shadows of the city was concealing whatever it was that had produced the reiatsu and soon every trace of it disappeared. "We should get back, now," Yoruichi said sternly,

"Hai," Mizuki replied swiftly and followed closely behind Yoruichi. The two moved to leave, but were met by a small army of hollows,

"Damn…" Yoruichi whispered.

OoOoO

Renji opened the door to an already crowded room. He raised one of his heavily tattooed eyebrows,

"Has the hollow situation really become this bad in the world of the living? I left there not 2 hours ago…" he sighed before proceeding deeper into the 12th division barracks, between the squad 12 members running around like mad-men and his own footing, he just managed to get across the room in one piece. A few metres in front of him was Rukia, she had arrived at the door just before he did; he caught her arm,

"Do you know what's going on?" he gestured to the flashing red lights coming from the large computer screens all around them, "and why we of all people were called here?" his frustration became apparent almost instantly, after his month long mission to the world of the living, he was supposed to take a few days of, Rukia gazed up to the tall man and shook her head slowly,

"I have no idea; I received a hell butterfly like you did," Rukia slipped her arm free from his grasp and opened the door. Renji sighed and thought back to his mission, nothing was that out of the ordinary, was it? '_Just some family troubles, nothing major to worry about,' _Mizuki's words played through his head like a recording; he knew something was off with the what she said but he shook it off and followed behind his friend.

They entered a large, nearly empty room. Ukitake stood in front of a large monitor hung from the wall; he had just switched off the power as the two came into view.

"Lieutenant Kuchiki, Lieutenant Abarai, how nice of you two too finally join us," Kurotsuchi stepped forward from behind his fellow captain; the irritation in his voice was evident.

"There has been an order from the Central 46, you are to go to the world of the living to apprehend a suspect involved in the murder of an entire clan that is closely related to the Soul King." Ukitake said evenly, Kurotsuchi glanced towards the white haired man curiously for a moment before striding towards the vice captains,

"When your business here is over, Ukitake, then I suggest you leave, my barracks are crowded enough without having a sealed off a room for you," he walked straight through the middle of Rukia and Renji. Ukitake smiled softly,

"Come in and sit down, I'll give you a lay out of your mission," Ukitake said with a straight face.

OoOoO

The two women had been going full pelt for 15 minutes straight and had nearly made it back to the shop, but Urahara appeared and stopped them less than 3 blocks away from their destination. Mizuki looked up to the tall blonde man; his usual laid back look was replaced with a serious look,

"Mizuki-san, unfortunately even with the Spirit Jammer, your presence here has been noticed not only by hollows, but by the soul society as well. Ukitake contacted me and said to open the Senkaimon from this side. I can't risk doing it at the shop, nor can we wait any longer, soon they'll be able to sense the presence of the key," His eyes burrowed deep into Mizuki's core. The petite woman stepped forward but stopped,

"Urahara, Yoruichi," The doors to the senkaimon appeared a few metres away from her, "I suggest you both leave before they see you, I don't think your being here will help the situation very much," she said with a fake smile. Urahara's eyes narrowed, his hand raised to shift the hat on his head and he pondered her words for a moment,

"Very well then; we will both leave, take care Mizuki," his voice was dark; the petite brunette knew neither wanted to leave her alone with a vengeful Central 46, but it was for the best, she glanced back at her two former mentors and nodded. The two vanished as she turned to face the growing shadows from the glowing gate way.

Mizuki's eyes glanced over the two shinigami emerging before her; the first was a short female who wore the 13th division vice-captain sash. Her raven black hair was cropped and inch below her ears and her striking bright purple eyes spoke nothing but seriousness. The other followed closely behind her.

"Renji," Mizuki whispered. The red heads eyes widened for an instant,

"So it is you…" he spoke to himself,

"Mizuki Kobayashi," Rukia spoke in a clear voice, "Central 46 has given the order for your arrest. Come quietly, we have been authorised to use force if necessary," Mizuki eyed the small raven haired woman, closed her eyes and took a breath before stepping forward.

"Very well then, I will comply," the brunette replied.

Rukia waited until Mizuki had passed her to turn around, a third hell butterfly fluttered toward her and began doing continuous laps around her. The door to the senkaimon shut, Mizuki looked back and was met with darkness, "_So this is how it will start? Not exactly what you had planned, ne?" _her zanpakuto said delighted at Mizuki's irritation, '_No, this isn't exactly what I had planned to happen'. _She let out a quiet sigh and continued walking.

* * *

Cliff hanger... kinda... anyway i would like at least a review on this story, i plan on continuing to update every week or so like i did this time. well, as long as the story stays in my head as clearly as it is now.

I haven't had enough time or motivation to fix my drawing tablet, so there still isn't a recent enough sketch of Mizuki, but i hope that soon enough there will be :D

Reviews welcome~!

Ja ne minna-san :3  
RukiaCHAN1


	3. The Decision

Hello everyone! Thanks all for the wonderful reviews! I was so happy to get the four in the forst few days :DDD  
Okay, this is a longer chapter compared to the others, and im actually pretty happy with it. also it has more to do with the central 46 decision than anything else, but also the relation ships between some of the people already in the soul society. (i had a rather hard time trying to piece the chapter together, and its missing a few small details, but its supposed to be about 10-11 o'clock when they arrive, ok? ((i'm saying theres a magical time skip going between the worlds ^^)) And a little fun game, how old do you think Byakuya is, and how old does he look? i did my own calculations, but i'm not really sure...

Enjoy~!

* * *

Ukitake softly blew against the steam of his freshly poured tea as he neatly stacked the pile of paper work on his desk and joined his old friend sitting at the small table near the door to his office.

"Are you sure you gave Kisuke enough time to warn her?" Kyoraku said glancing towards his old friend,

"I'm not sure, but even so, everything should work itself out; if they really want her then they'll have to follow her here," her replied with an exhausted sigh. Kyoraku took a deep breath and sipped on his sake; the cool, clear night sky drew his attention away from the white haired shinigami captain. A soft gust of wind blew through the large windows and brought with it the scent sweet scent of the outside world.

"The quiet before the storm, eh…?" he mumbled to himself.

OoOoO

The three shadows stepped out into the darkness of the Soul Society, Mizuki eyed her surroundings carefully, '_It really hasn't changed that much, has it?'_ She breathed in deeply as shockwave of energy passed through her, his presence was scattered all around Sokyoku Hill; she closed her eyes and felt a fierce battle between two highly skilled shinigami pass through her being; for the first time in over 70 years her senses felt fully awake and her heart was pounding. Soon the feel of his skin, the smell of his hair flooded in and threatened to overwhelm her, she stepped back for a moment and raised up to her throat, '_Damn, he'll feel it too, I'm sure of it…'_ her eyes dropped as she tried to force emotions down further for fear of them surfacing more than they already had, "_I can feel Senbonzakura's reiatsu close by, if you don't want to see him then hurry up and move,"_ her zanpakuto called hastily.

Renji stopped and watched her for a moment; he moved towards her, grabbed her wrists and placed reiatsu -repressing cuffs around them tightly. She looked up, at first her expression was surprise, but she quickly erased it and looked up to the red haired soul reaper,

"Why not use those earlier?" she queried innocently,

"Shut it and keep walking" he shoved her hands away from his and waited for her to continue moving. Their eyes lingered for a moment, his spoke of hurt and betrayal, Mizuki averted her attention away from the man before her, that look was all too familiar, and something she hoped to never see again,

"Fine," she replied weakly and followed behind a curious Rukia silently.

They descended down using the stairs carved into the sturdy face of the cliff, once they had reached the bottom Mizuki was expecting to be lead to the Central 46 head-quarters, but instead Rukia took a back street through the first divisions training fields,

"We're taking you to the Squad 13 prison where you will wait for the final judgement from Central 46," the raven haired shinigami spoke as she rounded a corner to get back onto one of the main roads of the seireitei. The buildings looked newer than when Mizuki had seen them last, and even just looking around she could tell that most of the secret passage ways that she had created while a child had been discovered and destroyed.

Mizuki sighed softly and looked up to the dark sky, '_Maybe I should have fought back… was it really that wise to return after all of this time?_' she closed her eyes and opened them again, '_No, I no regrets…' _

OoOoO

The fear of being found by Byakuya had eased from her mind as they neared the 13th division barracks. Renji had started to talk to Rukia as it became more obvious that Mizuki wasn't going to fight back, and even if she did, there was little chance of escape now.

Rukia stopped for a moment when they came to a building marked with the Japanese kanji for 13, she looked towards one side cautiously, as if someone were watching them from a far, before swiftly entering through the large front gates.

Mizuki looked around the deserted barracks, it may not have been that late in the world of the living, but here it seemed close to midnight, most of the divisions' lights were out, only those leading through the front court yard and the captain's office were still lit.

OoOoO

Kyoraku let out a half assed laugh, and eased back against his elbow,

"Maybe you should stick to tea after all, ne, Jushiro?" he mused. Ukitake hunched forward and held his flushed cheek in his hand,

"Definitely…" he replied while taking a sip of his now cold tea. A knock at the door distracted them both. The white haired captain sat up straight, "You may enter," he said; the door to his office slid open. Rukia and Renji bowed as soon as they saw the two taichou,

"Mizuki Kobayashi has been restrained and placed in the squad jail," Rukia said,

"Very good, thank you Rukia, Renji," he said with a smile, "You may do as you please now, the mission is over, I will handle the paperwork," Rukia's eyes widened slightly, she opened her mouth to protest but was beaten to the punch by her friend,

"With all due respect taichou, I don't understand why two fukutaichou were needed to retrieve Mizuki-sa- Kobayashi, she wasn't any threat to us" his eyes met with the elder mans, "And to have to do it in the middle of the night seems a little unnecessary," Ukitake considered the red haired soul reapers words carefully,

"Please, sit down and close the door," he placed his tea on the short legged table and shifted in his seat to face the two lieutenants. Kyoraku took one last swig from his sake filled cup,

"I'll go and welcome your house guest," he said, shifting his straw hat forward on his head to half hide his smile.

OoOoO

Mizuki sat silently in the 13th company jail cell; her hands were still bound with reiatsu-repressing cuffs and 2 guards stood either side of the large double doorway. She let out a soft, tired sigh and lent back against the chair,

"Kyoraku taichou, what are you-," one guard started, Mizuki looked back over her shoulder at the easy going captain approaching the bars to her cell.

"How are you doing, Mizuki-chan?" he said with a warm, calming smile. The petite brunette lifted her bound wrists,

"Good, considering the circumstances," she answered his smile with a carefree smirk, "Where's Ukitake-taichou?" Kyoraku leaned an arm against the metal bars,

"He's just explaining some things to the two vice-captains that brought you in…" he exhaled happily and gazed out the window,

"Exactly how much is he going to tell them?" he asked while standing and walking over to the taller man,

"Not sure to be honest," he replied.

OoOoO

Rukia let out a soft, shocked gasp,

"The royal family?" she repeated, "She's a part of the Royal family?" Ukitake nodded seriously,

"70 years ago she was forced to leave the Soul Society due to some… unforeseen circumstances caused by her two older siblings..." Renji's eyes drifted down, all manners of thoughts running through his head; it was obvious what he had been told were lies, and she had a perfectly good reason for lying, so why did he feel so hurt? _'I knew something seemed off…' _

"Nji- Renji!" Rukia nudged him with her elbow. His head jerked up and eyes were wide, he looked from Ukitake to Rukia and back again. The small raven haired shinigami next to him made an irritated noise and stared daggers into him,

"It's okay, Rukia," her captain smiled warmly at her before turning his gaze towards the red haired man, "I was just asking if you two could keep her presence here a secret, as well as the knowledge of her past and the mission details; Central 46 should pass their judgement by tomorrow and the captains and lieutenants will be officially informed then, … I know this is a lot to ask of you, but this is the reason I requested you go on this mission." Rukia and Renji nodded and bowed as the white haired captain rose from his seat, "The two of you are dismissed, and thank you again," he said before walking out the door of his office.

Ukitake turned the last corner to reach the 13th division jail; he reached for the handle when a dark chill ran through him,

"Ukitake-taichou, Central 46 has convened and a decision has been made," six tall men stepped forward in a 2 file line. They each carried a large staff and wore white cloaks that covered them from head to toe. "We are here to take the prisoner to them now," the white haired captain stared blankly at the men for a moment before his mind had totally processed what he was being told,

"There is no need to call her a prisoner," he stated as kindly as he could, "Right this way," he opened the door and walked the others into the room.

Mizuki looked towards the door; Ukitake along with 6 Guards stepped into the room.

"So they've made a decision already?" Kyoraku muttered to himself while standing straight to greet the new comers. One of the men walked silently to the cell and opened it while another conversed and passed paperwork to the white haired captain, Mizuki took a step back as the two made their way into the cell. One of the men lifted their hand towards the petite brunette,

"Tengoku no seishin shīru," a golden light formed around Mizuki as a tightness forced itself through the centre of her being; she managed to choke out a cough as the feeling began to pass, she raised a hand to her forehead. The restraints around her wrists meant that she couldn't sense or release spiritual pressure, but she could feel her mind become closed off to her zanpakuto causing the growing shadows to slowly start moving.

"Was that really necessary?" she questioned, her slender eyebrow arched slightly. Neither of the men answered her, instead they quickly moved behind the small noble, one carefully pulled the sealed zanpakuto from her hair as the other escorted her out of the cell.

Ukitake and Kyoraku had followed the unit out of the squad 13 barracks and said their good bye to Mizuki. There was a growing nervousness in the pit of the small brunette's stomach that had been worsening ever since the seal had been placed and her blade had been taken from her. '_I just have to get through this stupid trial, then it'll be fine… it will…_' she sighed softly and tried to stop her arms from trembling.

OoOoO

The room was dark; Mizuki could hear the mumbled voices of the central 46 members,

"Kobayashi Mizuki, do you know the crime of which you were accused of?" a male voice called, her eyes glanced up and she shifted awkwardly against the shackles that bound her wrists together.

"I know what _you_ are accusing me of," she replied distastefully. Her words brought more quiet and angry whispers from the council members,

"It has been proven, that Kobayashi Akifumi and Kobayashi Mamoro were the cause of Lord Yasahiro's death," Mizuki's eyebrow twitched irritably, she took a deep breath to try to stop the insults from erupting,

"Yes, I knew that already,"

"Another outburst like that, Kobayashi, and we will see it that the decision is over turned!" an elderly woman's voice called, "It was only thanks to the Soutaichou that you were allowed back in the Soul Society, whether you are royalty or not!" Mizuki quite literally bit her tongue after that,

"The order for your arrest was necessary to hide your presence from those who wish you ill harm, and the death warrant has been over turned," the male's voice continued, "You will be required to wear a reiatsu blocking device, much like the one you wore in the world of the living, however, this will block your reiatsu being sensed as well as released, that is until your siblings have been caught and brought to justice." The brunettes head whipped up,

"Does that mean you wish to kill them?" she asked the man directly, ignoring the protests from the other sitting around the court.

"If it comes to it…" he paused for a moment and looked around to the others, "Then yes," Mizuki sucked in a sharp breath, and closed her eyes.

"Also," the elderly woman from before called, "You will be required to hand over the Oken; so we can destroy it… There will only be one chance for them to launch a full scale attack once the news spread, we will not let them have the chance to steal away both components to the dimensional rift." Mizuki took a moment to process the words and awkwardly laughed,

"Well, yes, about that…" she lifted her head in the direction the voice had come from, "I no longer possess the key; you see I gave it away for safe keeping… I knew something like this would happen, so I gave it to the people who I deemed would protect it the best," the whole of Central 46 was in an uproar after her statement.

"Do you know what you've done?" the elderly woman yelled over everyone else, "Giving them the ability to take it before attacking the Seireitei!" she paused to collect her composure for a moment, "If you were anyone else, we would have killed you to stop the threat on the Soul King," her words seemed calm, but there was a darkness behind them that made Mizuki shiver.

"Fine, then kill me and be done with this stupid feud once and for all" she replied evenly, her eyes darting between the shaded figures of the Central 46,

"Insolent girl! Do not wish for death so-" the woman was cut short by one of her colleagues,

"Enough. Kobayashi Mizuki, reconsider your words and tell us where the Oken is," the man's words were filled with a concern that Central 46 usually wouldn't show, Mizuki averted her gaze.

_**Mizuki ran into the blazingly hot room, fire spun around the large banquet hall and out the windows as a hooded figure stood above a hunched over body. Her icy blue eyes widened, she darted forward and swung full heartedly at the dark figure that dodged and jumped away towards an open window. **_

"_**Mizuki, Mizuki!" Byakuya's voice called as he tried to follow behind her into the room but was cautioned back from growing flames. The petite brunette looked back to the assailant who had vanished from the room then down to the man bleeding out on the slowly burning floor.**_

_**His slightly wrinkled face and greying hair were almost all covered in blood, she choked back a sob and brushed the hair from his eyes before applying ample pressure to his still bleeding wound.**_

"_**M-Mizuki…" he coughed, her head quickly turned to her fathers, "Mizuki listen to me carefully, do not let anyone else try to take this key by force, within it is sealed a dark evil that will consume them…" tears fell down Mizuki's cheeks, as his weak and shaking hand reached into his sleeve and pulled out a small, golden, three pronged key before placing it into one of her blood soaked hands. His hand flopped to his side and his breaths became hoarse,**_

"_**Father… " She pulled her gaze away from the small object and went back to trying to stop the stab wound from worsening, "Wait please…. You can't die…" she whispered as she fell back.**_

The petite noble looked up,

"No," she breathed, "No, I cannot do that," the man breathed a heavy sigh,

"Very well…" he said, "But since there is no guarantee for your safety, you will be under 24 hour watch and placed in the care of a Captain-class shinigami until the time comes when we can assure the safety of the Kings Dimension…" he said.

"Okay…" she replied as the council members slowly started to file out of the room.

OoOoO

After that Mizuki was guided out of the Central 46 chambers by two of the guards that had escorted her there, and taken back through the Seireitei by one of them.

"Where are you taking me?" she asked, the hooded man turned his head for a moment,

"To your residence for the time being," he replied flatly,

"What about my zanpakuto?" she quickly added. Just above the man's hand glowed a bright green colour, slowly revealing her sealed blade,

"It will be returned to you when the taichou you will be staying with deems it so," Mizuki quietly sighed and tried to reach for her, nothing, she tried again and again but still came up empty, '_Damn… the darkness is growing…_' The hooded guard turned a sharp corner and something about the route they were on seemed eerily familiar,

"Where is it that I will be living?" she queried. The guard stopped causing Mizuki to almost ram into his back; she looked around the man's torso and saw large double gates with a symbol that was almost totally shaded by the dark of the night. _'Something familiar…'_

"Kuchiki-taichou, thank you for staying up this late for the judgement," the guard bowed low at the approaching shadow. _'Oh great, Central 46 certainly hasn't lost their touch when it comes to torture…'_

Mizuki gazed up to the handsome noble man standing before her, his eyes were sharp and cold but still she could read deeper into them than she would have liked. She dropped his gaze and stared at the dimly lit mansion behind him,

"You may go," he coldly to the guard before him before turning his attention towards the petite brunette, his misty grey eyes roamed her form for a moment before their eyes met again, '_The darkness… is…'_ she stepped forward for a moment, trying to stop her body from trembling, '_It's just like before…'_

* * *

Okay a few quick things (the_ whole _darkness thing will be adressed in later chapters) #1 concerning the central 46, Mizuki has a rather fond hatred of them, lets just say this isnt the first time they've blamed her for something she didn't do. #2 are the characters a little OOC? i know i have a bad habit of putting them in situations where i have absolutely no idea how they would actually react... or am i just over thinking it? and lastly #3 that lovely japanese word jumble that i cant seem to remember translates to 'Heavenly Spirit Seal' i had to come up with a name for it, cause there isn't a kido spell that does what i wanted it to...

Read, Review or not i dont care!  
(Al reviews are welcomed though, even if they're to mock my crappy writing!)  
P.S. its the night before school goes back, so i kinda had to rush the author note... and im tired cause of my stupid dog... so yeah, ignore this!

JA NE MINNA-SAN~!


	4. Dark Shadows and Fond Memories

Hi everyone! sorry i havent updated this fic, but over the past few weeks school has been just hectic. but, meh, its here now.  
Also this could definately be read as 2 seperate chapters (ya' know, being 4,565 words with out the a.n) so yeah. it is quite long :3

I'd also like to thank all those who have faved, altert-ed and or reviewed the past few chapters, you've been the one's that have made me feel guilty for not updating sooner :3 So thankyou

Read and enjoy~!(i don't own bleach, tite kubo does (== my least favorite person in the world at the moment)

* * *

Wind howled through the trees, causing stray leaves to fly through the courtyard of the Kuchiki manor. Mizuki's eyes glanced over the buildings within the large and guarded walls; many were the same as when she had last seen them, whereas others were either re-made or totally demolished. She sighed sadly, thinking how much time had really passed. She closed her eyes for a moment then re-opened them and turned her attention back to the man in front of her. Once the guard had left Byakuya had given her a brief hello, (she guessed it was due to his years of etiquette lessons more than anything else) and began to lead her to her 'living arrangement' as he had to delicately put it.

The brunette followed awkwardly behind the clan leader, his hands were fisted into tight balls, and from the instant she was alone with him, he had refused to look at her. Her mind was running at a million miles an hour, too many questions filled her mind at once, and threatened to turn any form of words into a complete mess; even so, she was too afraid, no, too ashamed to speak a word of it to him.

"You will be staying here for the time being," his cold, deep voice pulled Mizuki from her daydreaming. She was really out of it completely, they had passed through a corridor and upstairs in the time it had taken to get her head straight. Mizuki could feel Byakuya's harsh gaze on her, she took a steadying breath before raising her pale blue eyes to meet his; they were chillingly emotionless and stared right through her. "The central 46 have ordered that you be guarded around the clock, so in the morning you will have a choice of either me supervising you at the sixth division, or staying here," he continued while opening the door and walking into the dimly lit room. The petite brunette followed behind the taller, raven haired man. "I'm sure you'll find adequate clothing in the cupboards, and reading material is on the shelves to the left of the door…" Something in his voice saddened. Mizuki looked around the room, small, low cupboards covered two of the walls and a mid-level hanging shelf housed dozens of books. The room looked lived in, but something about it was too feminine to be Byakuya's styling… The blue eyed girl looked out the large window to her right, a large cherry blossom tree stood bare against the pale light of the moon. "I'll take my leave," he said, walking back past her. A wisp of cool air brushed across the brunettes face, his scent lingered in her senses for a moment, somehow even in winter, he smelled of spring, sakura trees in bloom and clear, cool springs. She closed her eyes and took in the last of it before it became overpowered by a richer and far darker scent.

'Even in the end, I'm still asking more of you…I'm sorry I-… Byakuya-sama,' a hushed feminine voice called. Mizuki froze, her eyes locked onto one fixed point on the wall, and she tried to stop the woman's presence from entering her mind.

The door slid shut and Mizuki waited a moment for his footsteps to disappear before she took a stumbled step forward, overwhelmed by the now pungent scent of death; she held back a cough and tightly clasped her chest. '_Thank god he left before…' _the dry, raspy cough escaped her throat and she fell to her knees.

OoOoO

Byakuya turned his head back towards her, she was frozen stiff. His eyes narrowed and looked her up and down, trying hard to keep his facial expression calm,

"It can even happen in this room?" he whispered to himself, '_She had no connection to her, so why_?' he breathed out softly and slid the door shut.

OoOoO

A knock at the door caused Mizuki to stir. Sleep didn't come easily that night; she had spent most of the late evening and very early morning pacing or sitting uncomfortably and reading old books. When she had finally managed to fall asleep on the thin ledge of the window sill, peace still avoided her. Dreams she hadn't had in decades and memories she had longed for returned however, not in the form she had wanted. The brunette was certain she had been tossing and turning all night; so much so she was absolutely sure she had fallen off of the small ledge just before dawn had broken, of course she didn't care about the soreness that was sure to be in her side later; but something had changed once the sun had broken, the fire within her was soothed and there she was, laying peacefully in the bed with covers spread over her petite frame. Mizuki's eyes fluttered open, she was sure that it wasn't a dream, why would she dream about falling asleep and then falling off of the window sill? She sighed and rolled over to her side, hoping that she would be able to return to sleep. Of course that was impossible, the knock sounded throughout the room, louder this time.

"K-Kobayashi-sama?" a female voice called nervously, "Kuchiki-sama has ordered me to wake you," the door slowly slid open. A young blonde haired girl with strikingly bright green eyes popped her head through the door; she was kneeling on the other side and bowed her head.

"Yes, okay then…" she replied sluggishly. Sitting up, she soon found, was more painful than she had anticipated. '_Maybe I did really fall last night.'_

"A-Also, you will need to get dressed quickly; Kuchiki-sama is waiting to go to the sixth division."

"I thought he said…" Mizuki shook her head from side to side, trying to snap herself out of her dazed state. The brunette shakily stood up and wiped the sleep from her eyes, "Why didn't he just leave me here?" she asked, while reaching for one of the cupboards.

"I'm not sure, he just told me to wake you." the blonde replied quickly, "The clothes are over here," she said quickly while pulling one of the many kimonos out from an adjacent cupboard.

"Oh," Mizuki smiled while striding over to the smaller girl, "Thank you," the blonde servant girl handed the pale brown kimono to her. "By the way, what is your name?" the blue eyed brunette asked cheerfully. The servant looked as though someone had asked her to strip naked,

"M-my name is Fakuna Rei," she looked away from the brunette noble.

"Well it's nice to meet you, Rei-san," she said with a calmer smile. Rei nodded and bowed in return,

"Kuchiki-sama is expecting to leave in about 30 minutes, I'll return with your breakfast soon," Rei spoke softly before leaving through the door and closing it shut. Mizuki was once again left with her thoughts, something she absolutely hated on a normal day, let alone when her zanpakuto wasn't there to filter anything.

OoOoO

Mizuki stepped from the steaming room and quickly moved behind a small, beautifully detailed room divider and allowed the now damp towel to drop to the floor. She turned to take hold of the other kimono then swivelled back around to face the makeshift mirror on one of the panels. Her baby blue eyes drifted down to her left thigh, three large gashes that had turned into a highly visible scar which covered her leg from the joint of her hip to her knee stared straight back to her. She sighed softly and let her hand trial over the torn flesh before swiftly pulling the fresh kimono on.

"I still can't remember that night all very well," she whispered to herself, half expecting to hear the voice of her zanpakuto, she let out a soft breath with her eyes still lingering on her now hidden scars. A flash of light crossed her eyes before darkness slowly crept into her vision. Mizuki tightly closed her eyes.

"Mi…zu….ki…." a familiar voice echoed in her head. The brunette's eyes whipped open; she was surrounded by complete darkness, only the occasional movement of the shadows allowed her eyes to see anything.

Cold, clammy hands grabbed at her limbs while the deathly voices continued to call her. The brunette struggled against the hands and tried her best to get away, she was succeeding that is until something sharply yanked at her hair, causing her to fly backwards.

Falling, the feel of the air as it hit her bare skin, everything in that moment made Mizuki's heart race, but she was quickly snapped from her dream like state when she hit something hard. Pain struck her back sharply and coursed through the rest of her body.

OoOoO

A twinge of pain stung through Byakuya's stomach,

"Kuchiki-sama…" Rei said softly, "Kuchiki-sama is something wrong?" the servant girl looked towards the noble man, unsure of what he was thinking,

"Never mind, please return to Kobayashi-san and get her ready…" a throbbing deep in his being told him something was wrong but he was the head of the clan now, and she was nothing more than a law breaker. He couldn't go running off to her every time like when they were young.

Byakuya closed his eyes and inhaled the cold winter morning air. Dark grey clouds covered what little sunlight had managed to warm the morning and the wind was starting to pick up.

"It's going to rain soon…" he said in a dull tone.

OoOoO

A dark figure stood, looming over Mizuki, she couldn't make out who it was or what they were trying to say. Her heart and head were telling her to run, get away from them as quickly as possible. She stood, turned and tried to run, but no matter how hard she tried to force her legs faster, they wouldn't, her movements were painfully slow and over exaggerated,

"Damn it…" she stopped, trying her best to catch her breath. Her eyes widened as loud footsteps approached her, the brunette turned just in time to see a flicker of deep black hair, and blazing sea-blue eyes. Mizuki gasped and pulled away,

"Kobayashi-sama!" Rei called, shaking the noble's shoulders desperately. Mizuki's eyes whipped open, her vision was blurry to start with, but quickly cleared. "Are you alright?" the servant girl asked. Mizuki nodded her head slowly and sat up, apparently in the commotion of what she had just been through, she had knocked over the room divider and Rei had returned the now quiet room.

Mizuki sighed and stretched her arms out. Rei kept talking, Mizuki, not wanting to seem rude allowed her to continue, but just ended up tuning her out, and looked herself over once. This had been the 4 time that year that the spirits had been able to drag her into the darkness, and each time she would often wind up with something to remember it. The petite woman lifted both of her sleeves to reveal dark, hand shaped bruises obviously visible against her pale skin.

"Oh my!" Rei exclaimed, "What happened?" Mizuki quickly pulled the sleeves back down and plastered a fake yet calming smile on her face.

"It's nothing, don't worry," her eyes trailed over the small girl before her, "It happened while I was in the world of the living," she smiled wider this time, which made Rei calmly smile in return.

Mizuki stood up, straightened her kimono and offered her hand to the younger girl which she nervously took with a considerable amount of hesitation. Quickly Mizuki untied her wet hair, ran a brush through it and tied it back up before the two began to walk around the fallen room divider and head towards the door. Mizuki's 'breakfast' was spilled over the floor and on some of the blankets of the bed,

"S-Sumimasen, Kobayashi-sama," Rei apologized while avoiding the nobles gaze,

"It's alright," Mizuki placed a hand delicately on the younger girls shoulder and bent down to pick the spilled meal from the floor. "And call me Mizuki, I'm not a real fan of titles…" she softly placed the broken bowl back on the tray and scooped it into her arms,

"Ah- please allow me-" Rei softly pulled the mess of a tray from the noble woman who resisted a little at first, but allowed the young servant to take it. "And please follow me, Kuchiki-sama is waiting," she said hurriedly while scooting out the door.

OoOoO

The two women walked through the many different hallways of the Kuchiki estate. Rei quickly darted into the kitchen and dropped off the tray of spilled food before swiftly making their way to the front gates where they found Byakuya, who was conversing with one of the men Mizuki recognised from the night before. His once pristine white cloak was torn rather marginally at the bottom, and black stains that looked like burns scorched areas all over the man's body.

"I wonder what happened…" Rei whispered far too loudly to herself as they approached the two men. Mizuki eyed the young girl questionably. '_Wasn't she told anything_?' she thought to ask Byakuya once they had left, but soon let that slip, as if he would actually tell her. Rei stopped and bowed to Byakuya,

"Sorry, for being so late, Kuchiki-sama," she said, keeping her head down. Byakuya gave her a once over before giving a stern look to Mizuki,

"We're leaving now, please try not to wonder off," he said before giving a short nod to the man standing opposite him and turning to leave. Mizuki waved a quick good-bye to Rei before following behind the noble man, '_he's in a mood today, best not irritate him too much…'_ a small, barely noticeable smirk tugged at the corners of her lips.

OoOoO

Morning had turned to afternoon before Mizuki had realized it, although, sometimes the hours seemed to drag on and on. The noble woman sat uncomfortably in Byakuya's office, if it weren't enough that he had decided silence was going to be the best way to deal with their situation; she wasn't allowed to leave his side. The brunette flopped back on the three seater couch and opened one of the books she had selected from the bookshelves in his large office. 'American Poetry' was swirled elegantly on the front cover in a deep black ink. She opened the book, expecting to find the Japanese translation of the poems, and instead she found her own perfectly formed- handwriting in complete English. Her eyes widened slightly, to be honest; she was surprised that the book didn't drop right from her hands.

Mizuki's eyes flickered back to the noble man focused on his large stack of paper work in front of him. _'I didn't know he would keep this…' _ A warming smile crossed her face as she turned back to the book; it had been years since she had seen this. She wrote it, what seemed like a life time ago for Byakuya after a rather uneventful trip to the world of the living. At first he had complained about the book because it was in English, however over time that quickly and came to enjoy it.

"Kobayashi-san," Byakuya's voice rang loud in the silence, "I have to oversee the training of the new recruits; you may follow me or stay here." His voice was far too dull and emotionless, even for him. She could tell instantly that he was hiding something; after all, many people, including their fathers considered them to be Ishin denshin. The noble girl thought about it for a moment,

"Hai, I suppose I'll come," she knew she didn't really have a choice in the matter. Byakuya stood, and headed for the door, Mizuki walked quickly behind him.

OoOoO

The first thing she had noticed when they arrived at the training field wasn't the natural beauty even in such a gloomy day, or the way that the squad all changed from buffoons to well-ordered soldiers in Byakuya's presence. It was the squads overly loud and boisterous red head lieutenant; Byakuya let out a soft breath and called the last few stragglers to attention.

The training was like any other for a soul reaper at their level, some excelled, others failed horribly. All seemed to enjoy it enough, well, all with the exception of Renji, the moment he saw Mizuki, both she and she guessed Byakuya could tell he became slightly more unpredictable and varied with his moods. The noble woman sighed softly and lay back on the faintly damp grass. The sky was still darkened and the threat of a sudden downpour loomed in every ones minds. Something about the way the air smelled, the thin, cold wind moving against the nearly bare trees seemed eerie, was it because of the constant replaying of that memory last night, or could it just be because she had returned to the Soul Society? She closed her eyes and soon the sound of clashing metal vanished.

OoOoO

_**Mizuki stood wide eyed; she desperately didn't want to believe what her brother had told her. Mamoro gave a stern nod, **_

"_**That's what the message said…" his voice was kind, he was kind, it was always so, so why did something seem off?**_

"_**Sojun-sama is…" she couldn't find it in herself to finish the sentence. Mamoro's deep blue eyes softened, **_

"_**Yes, he passed away on a mission to the human world early this morning," Mizuki's expression turned from disbelief to concern, "A funeral will be held once his body has been returned." The young noble man allowed the hell butterfly to leave before turning his attention back to her. **_

_**It was a day like any other, training with her brother, arguing with Byakuya, fun… and now this... Mamoro strode over to Mizuki and placed a hand on the brunettes shoulder to try to comfort her, he wasn't sure if it had worked, her pale blue eyes were unfocused and staring into the distance.**_

'_**First Yoruichi-san… then Byakuya's mother, now this…' the young nobles head was in a complete mess, friends had died before and even back then she had never truly known how to act. This was different. She knew this was not only going to hit the soul society, but Byakuya hard, especially now that he only had his grandfather to rely on… wait, he had her too, right? Her gaze dropped to the ground, 'No, he hates me, all we do is argue…' the brunette took a deep breath, "Mizuki," her zanpakuto called. "Do not worry so much, ne? Byakuya is strong." she could feel her zanpakuto spirit smile. She was right, after all, Byakuya had always seemed to take after his grandfather in more ways than one, and it often seemed weird that Sojun was his father. But still,**_

"_**What about Byakuya?" she asked wanting desperately to get out of her own head. Mamoro's eyebrows rose for an instant before returning to normal. A calming smile crossed his face and he looked deep into the smaller girl's eyes, "He already lost his mother earlier in the year and now this…" she trailed off, her head turning to the side slightly to avoid her brothers' gaze.**_

"_**My guess is that Genrei-sama has already told him…" Mamoro softly stroked his sisters' cheek, something their mother always use to do when he was upset. Mizuki looked into the distance of the rukon district; something deep inside of her nagged her on to find Byakuya, while another, more rational side said to leave him be. "C'mon, let's finish training, for now it's best to let the family grieve." The dark haired man stepped back, taking a stance and waiting to Mizuki to answer. She did, reluctantly as it may be. His younger sister nodded and slowly readied herself for his first attack.**_

_**OoOoO**_

_**After the training session had ended, Mizuki had decided to leave the house for a while. She went walking through the seireitei, trying to forget about what had happened. The young noble sighed as she turned a corner and was met with servants that she recognized from the Kuchiki mansion, they approached her quickly and bowed.**_

"_**Mizuki-sama," the female, Tamaki said hurriedly, "Have you seen Byaku-K-Kuchiki-sama?" she said. Mizuki's eyebrows knotted together,**_

"_**No, not since yesterday, why what's the matter?" she asked. Tamaki's face saddened and she looked up her male counterpart,**_

"_**As you know, Sojun-sama has… passed," Jin paused for a moment, "Genrei-sama told Byakuya-sama this morning, and that was the last time anyone has seen or heard from him," Mizuki let out a sad breath and looked up to the setting sun, it was getting late, and his grandfather must be worried sick, even if he didn't show it physically.**_

"_**I'm sorry, but like I said, I haven't seen him, I'll let you know if I do though." The two servants looked drained; they both bowed and left the young noble girl alone. "Damn it Byakuya… why would you do such a thing?" she whispered to herself before flash stepping away.**_

_**Mizuki checked different places she knew Byakuya might have been, unfortunately none turned out to be right. The sun had fully set, and the moon was the only thing lighting the way home. "Father is going to be angry when I get home…" Mizuki stopped, entranced by the luminous moon before she felt her stomach knot slightly, "Go to Yoruichi's 'secret' training grounds, I can sense Senbonzakura's spiritual pressure…" Mizuki thought over what her zanpakuto had said for a moment,**_

"_**Are you sure?" she asked, "Yes," her zanpakuto replied. Mizuki complied, and flash stepped to the not so secret training grounds. **_

_**OoOoO**_

_**The moment the noble girl stepped into the underground training field; she was engulfed in Byakuya's spiritual pressure. Her knees and shoulders became numb from the pressure, but she fought through the soreness to try to reach him. **_

_**When she came closer to him, the pressure of his reiatsu disappeared, **_

"_**What are you doing here?" he asked bluntly. Mizuki was taken back for a moment, but she quickly regained her composure,**_

"_**I'm looking for you, what else would I be doing?" she knew that came out, slightly meaner than she intended, and wished almost instantly that she could have said it a different way. Byakuya let out a sarcastic-half laugh, the brunette girl could felt his eyes on her, even if she couldn't see his face, and she knew they were deadly serious. The noble girl took a deep breath and continued to walk forward, "Byakuya, please, you need to go back, everyone is worried about you," she took a last step towards him and hesitantly reached forward. When she touched his shoulder, a soft buzz of electricity passed through them. Each of them pulled away, Byakuya turned around eyes wide,**_

"_**What was that?" his eyes narrowed accusingly. Mizuki stared at her hand; the soft buzzing had turned into a pleasant tingle.**_

"_**I-I'm not sure…"Byakuya's eyes met hers, and the brunettes hand dropped, she took another, smaller step towards him. "I know people have probably been saying it all day, and I know that you're probably over it, but I-I'm sorry about your father…" she trailed off, "I-I know you're upset, but please," her eyes sparkled with magnificent shades of blue in the artificial light, "Byakuya, everyone is worried," the way she emphasized the 'everyone' made his throat close, let alone the way she said his name. "I know all we do is arguing most of the time, and you don't care for me all that much, but …"she trailed off, not really sure what else she could say, little did she know how much those words stung, he closed his eyes for an instant before looking away from her. She reached forward and tucked his fringe behind his ear, "Byakuya, if not for me, then for your family. Onegai," She didn't want to mention his family's situation at first, but found it necessary by that point in time. Byakuya's hand quickly seized her hand pulled her flush against his body.**_

"_**You know, you really are ignorant," he whispered sternly. Mizuki opened her mouth to try to protest, but her words were muffled by Byakuya's lips. The small noble girl's cheeks flushed a deep pink, the soft buzzing quickly returned this time on a far larger scale. The feel of his lips, soft and warm against her own was overwhelming, he pulled away for a moment, earning a soft, wanting gasp from Mizuki. Byakuya chuckled softly and placed soft kisses down her cheek and neck then began slowly sucking on her skin and tracing intricate details on her marked skin. Mizuki slowly closed her eyes, while holding her hand against his, just as heated cheek and entwining her fingers in his silk-like hair.**_

OoOoO

The noble girl's eyes opened, the sky was still a dark shade of grey, and the clashes of metal continued to sound in the distance,

"You're awake eh?" Renji said while keeping his eyes firmly locked on the training session. Mizuki sat up, feeling far better than when she had laid down,

"I fell asleep?" she asked herself while moving to rest on her elbows. Renji eyed her carefully, almost as if he didn't believe what she had just said.

"Yes, you've been a sleep for about 20 minutes now," Renji stood up, "Well at least you have good timing, the session is about to finish," he said casually while striding to join his captain, who called out a few more orders before allowing the squad to return to their usual activities.

Mizuki stood up and walked towards Byakuya and Renji, she had arrived just in time to hear Byakuya dismiss Renji for the night. The raven-haired captain glanced for a moment at Mizuki, looking as though he wanted to vocalise something desperately, before his eyes moved from her to one of the trees in the distance.

"Kobayashi, get behind me, now." He said strictly, the petite brunette looked up to him questionably; she took a sharp breath in, wanting more than just an order from him. "_Mizuki_ now," His voice was deadly serious, she gazed into his smoky grey eyes, looking for some sort of answer; all that she saw was urgency. The brunette nodded before following his orders. Moments later a large, clear barrier surrounded them and three figures hidden in shadow appeared.

"Why hello, Mizuki-chan," the tallest of the three called. Byakuya's eyes sharpened as one hand rose protectively to his sword and the other to obstruct their view of Mizuki. "It sure has been a while, eh?"

OoOoO

Mamoro stepped through the large senkaimon along with 2 others, his deep black hair whipped around his face in the untamed wind.

"Heh, it appears that those three have already found her, ne, Mamoro," one of the men called, placing a relaxed arm around Mamoro's shoulders. The blue eyed man sighed softly and shrugged his brothers arm off,

"Akifumi why are they here? There's no need for-" Mamoro turned around, Akifumi was smiling widely, his one green and one red eye were sparkling stunningly in the setting sun light.

"Kuchiki Byakuya is with her, it should be interesting to see how those three handle it," Akifumi flicked his shoulder length black hair out of his eyes and proceeded to lead the other two away from the still open senkaimon.

* * *

So there is that, the next chapter will have the fight, as well as Mizuki meeting Genrei again, and well, lets just say that she caused Byakuya start breaking the rules, so, they arent exactly on the best of terms :3

Also, what did you think of  
-the flashback/kiss scene (too smutty? i thought so :p)  
-her brothers so far? (they're REALLY under developed, and, well, so is Rei to be honest... she was kind of a last minute addition that i just came up with while writing, but she does have a purpose, i promise!)  
-also was anyone too OOC? i seriously tried my best to keep them in character... but... well, its hard :/ especially since byakuya is awfully hard to read, and i have to make it sound like Mizuki actually _can_ read him with out anyone else being able too, so it's just a big circle of complete irritation.

Oh and if anyone wan't to know what the phrases are, just ask, i cant remember all of the ones i used, but i do remember Ishin Deshin - its a way of saying that two people know eachother so well, that there is no need to words. Literally translates to "what the mind thinks, the heart transmits." My Japanese teacher told us a whole heap of japanese idioms on friday, and this one stuck out like a sore thumb to me, simply because it pretty much summed up something that would take me a while to explain in 4 syllables. :D Google it if you don't believe me.

All reviews welcomed~!

**SPOILER ALERT** (well, depending on where you're upto in Bleach.)  
Also with the note about Kubo at the top, i truely hate that Kubo-sensei is sick at the moment and really want him to get over it as soon as possible, but there is a little voice in my head that continues to say 'serves you right', because quite literally a few days after the published chapter where he decided to kill off Byakuya was made public (i refuse to belive he is acutally dead) he got sick. Still, i want him to get better as soon as possible.


	5. Barriers broken, Swords Sharpened

Hey everyone, sorry for another late update... unfortunately after being sick for a week all of my teachers decided to dump last minute assignments on me, and to be honest to finish this chapter, i actually neglected my art and PLP homework. BUT IT WAS WORTH IT! i actually really enjoyed writing this chapter, the awkwardness between Byakuya and Mizuki continues, but there is a break through! and more information on mizuki is also reviealed :3 (its a really long chapter again)

Thanks to everyone who reviewed on the last chapter, you are all my inspiration and reason for neglecting my school work :D (its a good thing)  
Enjoy~! ^^

(this chapter is kinda jumpy in the characters it follows, i think there are three different things happening in this one, but i'm pretty sure it makes sense :P)

* * *

Byakuya's eyes narrowed as the three shadowed covered figures moved closer. Two of them were obviously bulky built men and wore long, hooded cloaks. The other was a girl far smaller and thinner than her counterparts,

"My, my Byakuya-san," the tallest man called putting an obvious emphasis on the nobles name, much to Byakuya's distaste. "How you have grown," a wicked smile blazed from under the man's dark blue cloak. Mizuki looked up to the raven haired captain,

"You know these three?" she asked, instinctively reaching for her missing zanpakuto. '_Oh yeah…_' she sighed and dropped her hand back to her side.

"I don't know them personally, I've only ever battled the two men and I've never seen the woman before," his voice was dark and cautioning Mizuki not to step any closer to them. The man's cackling laugh rang out through the enclosed force field.

"Come on now Kuchiki Byakuya, why so cold? Last time the battle was at least a little interesting," the shorter of the two men called with his reiatsu beginning to flare in anticipation. Mizuki desperately wanted to do something to help, throughout the years she had fought alongside not only Byakuya but other accomplished shinigami, now the feeling of powerlessness and total helplessness weighed heavy in her mind.

OoOoO

"I still don't see the need to involve those three, I'm sure that if we just-," Mamoro started but was cut short by Akifumi's glare.

"At this moment in time," he said, "We cannot touch her, especially now that the whole soul society will be on guard," his mismatched eyes flickered back to the battle, "And you," he muttered to the man standing silently behind him, not caring to even look at him. "You know your mission, so do not ruin anything, got it?" he said with a malicious grin. The slender man nodded slightly,

"Very well then, I shall take my leave." He said before bowing. Mamoro glanced at the green-eyed man's face warily before keeping his eyes squarely locked on the half-helmet hollow mask on the left side of his head. "Is something wrong, Kobayashi-sama?" he asked dully. Mamoro's attention moved back to his sister's battle,

"No, my brother has given you your orders, now go, Ulquiorra-san," he replied, the arrancar nodded graciously before disappearing into the embracing darkness of the forest.

"You don't trust him?" Akifumi mused happily. Mamoro looked to his brother, who was clearly more interested in the fight than anything else,

"I trust him enough, it's what that **man** tasked him with that makes me uneasy," Akifumi leaned against the trunk of a tree and his eyes narrowed.

"Enough, what we decided years ago cannot be undone." he said sharply, "Things just have to let it play out the way we planned…" Mamoro looked away from his brother, something didn't sit right with him, but he couldn't vocalise what it was. Besides, Akifumi had been there for him all the time, it would be wrong to turn on him now… right?

OoOoO

A black butterfly followed behind the red haired lieutenant and began to circle around him once it had managed to catch up. He held a hand out to the small insect and it landed softly on his finger. A message passed through his mind, _"All Taichou and Fukutaichou are to report immediately to the first divisions barracks for a meeting. There will be no exceptions or excuses tolerated, all captain-class shinigami must attend."_ The butterfly then began to flutter its wings again before taking off.

"We're having a meeting together? How many years has it been since that happened…" Renji whispered to himself while looking back on the stone path he had just come from, "I bet it has to do with you, doesn't it, Mizuki-san…" he took a moment and watched the barricade of trees that surrounded the training field sway elegantly in the breeze, a tingle of spiritual energy buzzed through him. He closed his eyes and let the feeling slip away before turning back around and flash stepping to the first division.

OoOoO

A shockwave of reiatsu blew Mizuki back against the wall of the barrier causing it to shudder, threatening to shatter in response. She slumped down against the dirt covered ground and held her arm out to stop the nauseating dizziness from making her fall down any further. She looked up, and saw Byakuya taking on both of the male opponents with incredible ease. 'I suppose he is a Taichou now…' the petite brunette shifted into a kneeling position and used her knee as well as the ground to propel herself to stand up again. A small gust of wind pushed through the kido of the barrier and brought with it the scent of the coming night she took a steadying breath and looked back to Byakuya. One of the men was now laid out, unmoving on the ground while the other seemed to take a defensive stance closer to the darkening shadows of the trees.

"Have they simply not obtained shikai, or are they just trying to fool around and buy time for something else?" Mizuki whispered to herself as she began to walk back towards Byakuya. A flash of light crossed her eyes,

"Heh, what's wrong, Kobayashi Mizuki?" a man called from behind her. Her pale blue eyes locked with Byakuya's smoky grey ones for an instant. The second man had moved too fast for her to see. "Apparently you used to be rather bold when it came to battling, but now…" she could feel him reach forward to play with the few strands of hair that had fallen out of their usually well-kept place. The petite brunette spun around and was met by the sparkling yellow-gold eyes of the man. She had no time to react, not time to dodge or intercept his attack. He brought the blade down sharply, Mizuki's eyes tightly shut awaiting the burning sensation of his blade tearing through her soft flesh to hit her, but there was nothing. Her eyes opened and widened Byakuya stood before her effortlessly blocking the man's attack with his blade and grasping his wrist. The small brunette let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding and began gasping for air, far away their reiatsu was strong but up close the spiritual pressure was unbearable and felt as though he was trying to smother her, even if Byakuya was standing between them.

"Mizuki," Byakuya's voice was calm and surprisingly husky, "Step back." For a moment she thought about arguing against his order, but his eyes and darkening presence said that it was an order that she should follow. "Chire, Senbonzakura." He spoke as his thin blade turned a vibrant pink and shattered into countless pieces. The woman gasped,

"Koyuga, get away from him now!" for the first time since the battle started the small girl spoke and moved from her place in the shadows. She disappeared from Mizuki's line of sight for a moment before reappearing next to her already injured comrade and back to the shadows again. '_Well at least they know when Byakuya means business…'_ The man that caught Mizuki off guard, Koyuga flash stepped back to the shadows of the trees. Byakuya's glare was hard and cold and seemed to stare right through the other three.

Another gust of wind came from behind and blew the petite brunettes hair across her face; she quickly restrained the untamed locks of golden brown behind her ears before a shimmering flutter of something near caught her attention. She focused her eyes on the silver-pink group of cherry blossom petals soaring towards the three still hiding themselves in the shadows.

"Why aren't they moving…" she took an unconscious step forward and saw reflection of a fine, purple screen, "Kido maybe?" The cherry blossoms turned sharply just before they were able to make contact with the shield-like screen and began to swirl around the three like a never ending vortex.

"Until I break the kido, they won't be leaving that space," Byakuya called while walking over to Mizuki and reaching for her hand. He lifted her arm up and examined it, in the commotion of the battle she had neglected to realise the large cut up her forearm and he held his hand over it. "At least try to be more cautious next time." The feeling of his spiritual pressure spreading through her was pleasant and ran through the core of her body. He removed his hand and looked her once over, what she presumed to be for anymore battle scars.

"I would have been fine if Central 46 hadn't decided to seal away my zanpakuto," The raven-haired noble gently dropped her arm and passed her by.

"That was your own fault," he muttered softly, pretending to be more focused on the barrier than anything else.

OoOoO

Renji glanced up and down the room of captain-classed shinigami. Everyone was there well that was excluding his taichou, he sighed softly and tried not to call any unwanted attention to himself. This seemed like another boring captains meeting, quite often he would hear some taichou mainly Hirako Shinji complaining about how utterly boring and slow paced the meetings were, now he had wished he didn't judge the captain quite so harshly on his words.

"Now," the captain-commanders voice rang out, snapping a fair amount of the vice-captains out of their dreamland-like state. "The reason you were _all_ called here," he cleared his throat and took a breath, "Last night there was a hollow outbreak in Karakura Town, many of you know the details in the case, but not the cause of the incident." Renji saw a few of the captain's heads prick up, not to mention Komamura's ears, and tune into the conversation more. "A Spirit Wielder is a rare occurrence among those born in the Soul Society these days and are seldom let out of the protection of the Seireitei, but never the less a spirit wielder was the cause of the hollow outbreak in Karakura Town," Murmured whispers broke out through some of the room, _'The hell is a Spirit Wielder?'_ Renji thought to himself. "_Idiot, If you shut up and listen then you'll know won't you_" His zanpakuto's female side replied irritably.

"Just wait a moment Sou-taichou," Mayuri Kurotsuchi piped up over the rest of the voices, snapping Renji out of his daze. "Are you telling me that a being that has not been recorded as living in the soul society for over 200 years was born into the world of the living? That's absolutely preposterous!" the head captain looked towards Ukitake who stepped forward,

"No, actually it's quite the opposite," the white haired shinigami voice was cool and collected. "70 years ago a perfectly healthy Spirit Wielder was forced to leave the soul society due to a false claim that she murdered her father, Kobayashi Yasahiro. At the time, due to the severity of the crime, the death penalty was issued almost instantly and forced her into hiding, but last night her presence in Karakura didn't go unnoticed and so she has returned to the Soul Society." Kurotsuchi thought his words over carefully for a moment,

"If what you say is true then tell me why there isn't a record of her reiatsu or the murder?" he questioned accusingly, "My team acquired a sample of unknown spiritual pressure from the fight last night but they were not able to trace it back to anyone, and even if we could, there was no trace of Spirit Wielder properties in it." Ukitake took a soft breath,

"Because there was no record of her coming to the Soul Society and she wasn't enrolled in the Soul Reaper academy. She travelled here over one hundred and fifty years ago from the soul king's dimension. Her grandfather is the current Soul King, and her father was is second son." More hushed whispers, mainly coming from the lieutenants filled the cool dusk air, "And as for the spiritual pressure," he paused for a moment debating whether or not to say anything. "A seal was placed on her abilities from a very young age, so there wouldn't be anything abnormal in her reiatsu." Kurotsuchi stepped back into line and the room went silent.

"If I may, taichou," Rukia's voice called, obviously pointed towards her captain, who nodded in response. "What exactly is a Spirit Wielder?" All eyes turned towards Rukia and Ukitake.

"Very little is known about the fine details, but we do know that a spirit wielder is a rare occurrence that can only happen among high ranking nobles. The person is born with the ability to communicate with those they know who have passed on in this life. Also some have even been known to be able to totally cleanse hollows without a zanpakuto. Well actually most of the time zanpakuto aren't able to manifest into sword form when a person has the cleansing ability…" he looked over to the twelfth division's captain, "Do you have anything else to add?" Kurotsuchi took a deep breath,

"Unfortunately I haven't been able to get my hands on a suitable test subject. The only person who has was Urahara, and he decided to keep that research to himself." Renji swore he heard the 12th captain mutter a curse under his breath at Urahara's name.

"It is because of her that this meeting was called." The captain-commander quickly said before anyone else could pipe in. "Her brothers, Kobayashi Akifumi and Mamoro have been on Aizen's side for what we can only guess to be 50 years. It is thought that they are here to free him, and then aid him in overthrowing their grandfather." A louder uproar of voice echoed back and forth in the large room. '_This_,' Renji thought, _'is going to be a long day…'_

A loud beeping noise rang out under the voices. Kurotsuchi halted his conversation with Ukitake and pulled a small device from his sleeve. His eyes widened for a moment before he turned towards his silent vice-captain.

"Nemu, you will return to the squad and deal with the intruders, I will go and see who Kuchiki-taichou is fighting." He said while turning to the squad doors.

"Kurotsuchi Mayuri, you have not been dismissed." The Soutaichou called,

"Something has come up, and I have to leave, Nemu will tell you the details." He stated simply before flash stepping out of the room. The captain-commanders eyes flicked to the 12th division fukutaichou.

"Hai Soutaichou, there have been three intruders identified as having entered the soul society over half an hour ago." Her voice was calm yet firm, "Our devices were blocked and all the information was only just recovered and someone has engaged the sixth squad captain in battle." She bowed before following her captain out of the tense room.

"So they have already begun to move, ne Yama-jii?" Kyoraku thought out loud. The captain-commander let out a breath,

"This meeting is over, for now I want all captains to watch for any strange activities in the seireitei and Rukongai, but if you're faced with either Akifumi or Mamoro, do not kill them, central 46 wants them alive and able to talk." The captains and lieutenants nodded simultaneously before beginning to file out of the 1st squads barracks. Renji quickly darted from the room, avoiding any attempts at conversation from the other lieutenants and headed straight for his squads training grounds.

OoOoO

The barrier shuddered under the weight of Byakuya's spiritual pressure. Mizuki sat facing the setting sun and turned back to him,

"You already know that using Senbonzakura is the only way out of here, so why are you wasting time?" she asked while standing. His gaze met hers before he looked back to the swirling vortex of sakura petals.

"If I were to use Senbonzakura, they would most likely escape." The petite brunette stared at the barrier.

"So? No big loss there…" Byakuya didn't answer. Mizuki took a soft breath, "And what about kido?" she queried,

"The barrier works like seki seki rock, when it comes to kido it absorbs the spirit particles in the spell and strengthens the barrier." Mizuki sighed softly.

"Well then I suppose we should just dig our way out then?" in their younger days, that would have received a small chuckle from Byakuya, but now, there was nothing. Anger swelled in Mizuki's stomach and her eyebrow twitched irritably. "Would you look at me when you talk?!" she yelled, "I don't know if you've realized but were both stuck in this situation, whether we like it or not!" Byakuya's eyes softened, but he didn't turn to look at the noble girl. He wasn't sure if she even knew what she was speaking of, the barrier, or this awkward experience overall. The raven-haired noble sighed aloud and recalled his zanpakuto into a single blade before slicing through the barrier. Mizuki's eyes widened before turning back to where the vortex of cherry blossoms had been. Byakuya had been right, no sooner had he sealed his sword, they were gone. A sinking feeling charged through Mizuki, if they had been able to break through the barrier and kept them in custody, could they have led them to her brothers? Told them any valuable information? Even helped them defeat them? The noble girl now knew why he wanted to keep them alive so desperately.

"You get careless when your emotions and anger start to surface Mizuki, that's no way for a princess to act." The petite brunette was sure it was nothing more than a memory playing back in her head, and it wasn't until she could feel Byakuya's eyes on her that she had realised he had been the one to say it.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that…" her voice was soft and calm. The last of the barrier fell apart around them like glass. Byakuya sheathed his sword and stepped back towards Mizuki,

"What would you have me call you then?" his voice was cool and light.

"Mizuki" She replied and looked up to him. The sun was almost completely set and the moon reflected colours of purple and blue on Byakuya's hair. She wanted desperately to reach up and touch him as they did when they were young, but a nagging voice in the back of her mind pulled her back to earth. '_He was married. He loved her. Just stop dreaming now. It'll hurt less that way…_' Her gaze dropped and her hand clung tightly to her kimono. Something warm cupped her cheek and forced her head to tilt up.

Byakuya's eyes were warm and more rounded than their usual sharp shape. Mizuki's hand let go of her kimono and entwined her fingers with his.

"Taichou!" Renji's voice boomed as his shadow covered figure rounded a group of trees. Byakuya pulled away from the brunette quickly,

"Very well then… Mizuki…" the raven-haired noble began moving toward his fukutaichou, Mizuki followed slowly behind him. Her cheeks flushed a deep pink.

OoOoO

"Well that was uneventful…" Mamoro said dully. Akifumi let out a half-hearted chuckle,

"Oh, but dear brother how wrong you are!" he stood up and began walking away from where they had been sitting. Mamoro quickly followed behind his brother,

"What do you mean?" he demanded.

"Their link never ceases to amaze me…" Akifumi whispered to himself.

OoOoO

Byakuya walked out of the central 46 chambers and looked towards Mizuki,

"What happened?" she asked eagerly. He continued walking down the hall and looked around before speaking,

"Something is wrong." He replied quietly, "There was a guard stationed around the 6th division training field, and yet foe's so weak were able to defeat all of them…" his eyes were sharp and calculating.

"So, they wanted those three to get through?" Mizuki stated questionably which received a curt nod from Byakuya. The petite brunette stopped walking for a moment and thought about the possibilities and variables. Everything led back to the guards either letting them through willingly, or being overpowered by someone else, and considering that there wasn't and sound or reiatsu signifying a battle, so, the latter would be wrong. She sighed softly and started walking again.

OoOoO

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN STOLEN?!" Kurotsuchi screamed. Most of the research and development team were reduced to quivering masses of flesh after their captain had returned.

"S-someone broke into the division w-while we were dealing with recovering the data on the intruders." Rin stumbled over his words continuously, much to Kurotsuchi's annoyance. The captain slammed his hands down on the work bench where his latest experiment had once sat.

"That was the last of the pure samples we had, all others have already been contaminated." He gave a tired and disgruntled groan before turning to Akon. "Get me the surveillance video. I don't care if it has been messed with. Get it. NOW!" he ordered.

OoOoO

"Hey! Byakuya, wait a second!" Mizuki trotted faster to try to match the speed of the irritated nobleman. Her eyes trailed up to his face, it was cool and collected, like always, and showed none of the emotions she could sense just from being close to him. The petite brunette quickly grabbed his shihakusho sleeve, "Stop, okay?" Byakuya took a calming breath and locked eyes with her. "Tell me everything they said. Please…" her voice was calming and sweet. Byakuya closed his eyes for a moment before reopening them.

"They are considering a total recall of their decision to allow you to integrate into the seireitei. Also, they are going to issue a kill on site order for your brothers, this hostile activity, using those three to attack, they said they had no choice." Mizuki's eyes widened and she looked at Byakuya as if you affirm what he had just said. His serious expression and sharp eyes confirmed it. She dropped his sleeve and looked out to the now high and brightly glowing moon.

"You don't believe that it's necessary?" she said softly. Byakuya followed her gaze,

"What I believe… does not hold any relevance in the eyes of central 46" he replied. "We should get back to the manor," he said while beginning to move down the lightly crowded street.

OoOoO

"Brother!" Mamoro called, "Tell me why you allowed those three to interfere, they did nothing except made the soul society ever more vigilant." Akifumi was sitting on a plush, white couch that faced a large fire pit set squarely in the middle of the large, underground room. "You've been dodging my questions ever since we arrived, Akifumi, answer me."

"I must say," he cracked a wide smile while reclining deeper into the seat, "Aizen certainly knows how to live," he picked up one of the many books that sat beside him and flipped through the pages casually.

"Akifumi!" Mamoro paced through the large space in the dimly lit room. His brother let out an exasperated sigh and put the book down as his mismatched eyes met his brother's.

"There is a belief in the world, that when one life meets another, something is born. People think it is friendship, love, fear. But in actuality it is something far more complex." Akifumi paused for a moment, his brothers intrigued expression caused a smile to tug at the corners of his mouth. "Spirit Wielders have a range of abilities that allow them to control death far more accurately than a normal shinigami, but, there is something else. Something everyone is born with, but rarely realises it."

"Bonds… link to other people," Mamoro finished as his brothers words from earlier in the day ran through his head. _"Their link never ceases to amaze me…" _Akifumi's smirk turned into a grin.

"Yes, but in a spirit wielder this ability is amplified ten-fold, which, intern allows them to make decisions about people's personality almost instantly, and enables them to make ever-lasting bonds with people, whether it be mental, spiritual or physical." Mamoro contemplated his brother's words carefully,

"That's what you were doing? No, that's **all** you were doing? Testing her link with him?" Mamoro sounded more outraged than he had intended,

"Yes, and that is what I think the central 46 were doing as well, otherwise they would have never let them through…" he eased back against the chair once more, "it was all in a controlled environment Mamoro, no need to fret." He reached forward and placed the book onto the open fire, "Ah, Ulquiorra, I suspect everything went smoothly?" he turned to face the looming shadow in the doorway.

"Yes, I succeeded in retrieving the samples from the 12th division," his emerald eyes trailed down to the now burning book, "I do not think that Lord Aizen would appreciate you burning his things…" the arrancar walked forward and gently placed the small box he was carrying on the table. Mamoro stared at the box cautiously,

"They're preserved samples of espada DNA," Ulquiorra stated dully.

"And why do you need that?" Mamoro retorted. Akifumi stood up and slung his arm around his brother,

"You shouldn't be so nosy, Otouto-chan"

"Where is Kyouka Suigetsu? I've been instructed to closely monitor the healing process." Ulquiorra asked plainly. Akifumi's smile faded slightly,

"It still hasn't been able to heal fully, and even if he does, Aizen freed him… what makes you think he would be of any help to us?" Akifumi pulled his arm away from his brother.

"You shouldn't bother yourself with such trivial matters," the arrancars dull, lifeless eyes connected with Akifumi's, who let out an angry breath and held his hand out.

Spiritual pressure focused in the palm of his hand as the green hilt of a sword with half of a guard manifested, "This is all I've been able to do, and considering that when we found it, it was in tiny pieces, I'd say that it's pretty good." The guard began to crumble into dust, Akifumi's usual easy expression turned serious and focused, "But it still doesn't have enough strength to stay in this world…" the hilt vanished and the royal man relaxed.

"Just make sure it is done in time, a slip up now would put the entire mission at risk…" he said before walking out of the large room.

"Well, he is quite the wet-blanket, isn't he?" he turned to Mamoro with a happy smile, but his brother didn't reflect his happiness,

"Akifumi, what else haven't you told me?" the tall black haired man asked earnestly.

* * *

Okay, i know byakuya is kinda sorta... really OOC, but he has to be when it comes to the mushy, smutty stuff, simply because its soooo much fun to write :D

Any questions, please, dont be afreaid to ask. If you think i didnt cover something, or something in the explanation didnt make sense. please tell me so i can fix it! (kinda paranoid that i missed something, cause i wrote some of the parts of this chapter 3 weeks ago)

Also any ideas for some plot twists or extra pairings, dont be afraid to ask, i dont bite (well.. only on mondays)

Please Read, review, alert, favorite or what ever the hell you do :3


End file.
